B.C. man shot by police in 2017 pleads guilty to string of offences

The man who was shot by a police officer at a Salmon Arm car wash will serve three more months in jail after pleading guilty to 10 charges.

Kaymen Winter, 23, appeared in Provincial Court in Kamloops on Thursday, March 22, where he faced charges originating in Nanaimo, Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam, Sicamous and Salmon Arm. He received a sentence of 104 days, after being credited for a total of 626 days already served.

The charge garnering the bulk of the sentence was a break and enter in Sicamous on Jan. 29, 2017. That was followed up by the incident in the car wash at Xcalibur Kawasaki in Salmon Arm on Jan. 30, 2017.

That incident sparked an investigation by the Independent Investigations Officer of B.C. (IIO), which is mandated to investigate any police officer-related incidents of death or serious harm.

In February of this year, the IIO concluded that the police officer involved was justified to shoot at the truck that was seen accelerating towards another officer. The officer fired 14 shots from a high-powered carbine rifle at the truck, striking the driver, Winter, as he attempted to flee from police. Winter was hit by multiple gunshots, including one bullet that struck him in the head. He was treated in hospital and later released.

Winter was being investigated after a 911 call was made to police reporting that someone was attempting to break into the coin box of the spray car wash booth at Xcalibur Kawasaki in Salmon Arm.

When police arrived, they parked deliberately in an attempt to make it difficult for the driver of the pickup truck to leave the scene. As one officer left his vehicle, it is alleged Winter began to open the garage bay doors, get in his truck and drive away. The IIO report states Winter told IIO investigators that he was aware he had outstanding warrants for his arrest, so his reaction was to flee when police pulled to the front and back of the car wash bay.

On Thursday, Winter pleaded guilty to three charges stemming from the Salmon Arm incident: mischief, three counts of possession of stolen property and possessing an instrument suitable for a break-in.

However, he pleaded not guilty to two other related charges – carrying, using or threatening to use a weapon and dangerous operation of a motor vehicle. He has opted for trial by judge alone, which will take place in BC Supreme Court in Salmon Arm. A date hasn’t been set yet.

Winter also pleaded guilty to several charges from Nanaimo, Coquitlam and Port Coquitlam: three counts of fraud under $5,000 as well as impersonating with the intent to gain an advantage. In addition, the Crown stayed several charges.